UFC Vegas 88 To Be Headlined By Heavyweight Strikers Tai Tuivasa And Marcin Tybura

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Las Vegas, January 24: UFC will return to the APEX in March with UFC Vegas 88 (also known as UFC on ESPN+ 97) headlined by a collision of top-ranked heavyweights that will see No. 8 Tai Tuivasa take on No. 11 Marcin Tybura.

A fan favorite, Tuivasa (14-6, fighting out of Western Sydney, NSW, Australia) looks to deliver another signature finish in his third UFC main event.

Tuivasa has finished all but one of his bouts by KO, including victories over Derrick Lewis, Augusto Sakai and Greg Hardy. He now aims to begin his 2024 campaign with a statement victory and build momentum for another run at the title.

A well-rounded veteran, Tybura (24-8, fighting out of Uniejow, Poland) intends to break back into the Top 10 of the division with a vintage performance.

Tybura holds notable wins over Andrei Arlovski, Stefan Struve and Walt Harris. Tybura now has his sights set on taking out Tuivasa and putting together another long win streak.

Also on UFC Vegas 88 (also known as UFC Fight Night 239) card, an exciting lightweight bout pits Thiago Moises against Brad Riddell in the potential co-main event.

Still only 28 years old, Moises (17-7, fighting out of Indaiatuba, Brazil) plans to put his submission skills to use in a classic striker versus grappler matchup.

Moises cemented himself as a top prospect ever since he joined the UFC six years ago with victories over Michael Johnson, Bobby Green and Alexander Hernandez. He now seeks to impress against Riddell and once again crack the Top 15.

An entertaining striker, Riddell (10-4, fighting out of Auckland, New Zealand) looks to add another post-fight bonus to his resume.

Riddel burst onto the UFC scene with standout performances against Jamie Mullarkey, Magomed Mustafaev and Drew Dober. Ridell now hopes to return to the win column in highlight-reel fashion.

Additional bouts on the UFC Vegas 88 card include

• Light heavyweight action sees former title challenger Ovince Saint Preux (26-17, fighting out of Knoxville, Tenn.) face off with Kennedy Nzechukwu (12-4, fighting out of Dallas, Texas).
• Natan Levy (8-1, fighting out of Las Vegas, Nev.) meets Mike Davis (10-2, fighting out of Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) for a thrilling clash at lightweight.
• No. 7 ranked bantamweight contender Pannie Kianzad (17-7, fighting out of Helsingborg, Sweden) looks to defend her spot in the rankings in a rematch against No. 9 Macy Chiasson (9-3, fighting out of Dallas, Texas).
• Josh Culibao (11-2-1, fighting out of Botany, NSW, Australia) and Danny Silva (8-1, fighting out of Santa Ana, Calif.) go toe-to-toe in an exciting featherweight bout.
• Christian Rodriguez (10-1, fighting out of West Allis, Wisc.) returns to the featherweight division to take on Isaac Dulgarian (6-0, fighting out of Kansas City, Mo.).
• No. 14 ranked bantamweight contender Josiane Nunes (10-1, fighting out of Gralha Azul, Parana, Brazil) meets No. 15 Chelsea Chandler (5-2, fighting out of Stockton, Calif.) in an intriguing bout.
• Middleweight veterans collide as Gerald Meerschaert (35-17, fighting out of Milwaukee, Wisc.) locks horns with Bryan Barberena (18-11, fighting out of Gastonia, N.C.).
• A thrilling welterweight bout pits Bryan Battle (11-2, fighting out of Matthews, N.C.) against Ange Loosa (10-3, fighting out of La Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland by way of Kinshasa, DR Congo).
• Flyweights Jafel Filho (15-3, fighting out of Fuazeiro, Bahia, Brazil) and Ode' Osbourne (12-6 1 NC, fighting out of Milwaukee, Wisc.) battle in an early Fight of the Night candidate.
• Jaqueline Amorim (7-1, fighting out of Coconut Creek, Fla. by way of Manaus, Brazil) and Cory McKenna (8-2, fighting out of Cwmbran, Wales) look to impress in a strawweight matchup.
• Dana White's Contender Series signee Charalampos Grigoriou (8-3, fighting out of Queens, N.Y.) aims to impress in his UFC debut against Chad Anheliger (12-7, fighting out of Airdrie, Alberta, Canada) in a bantamweight scrap.

UFC Vegas 88 Broadcast & Ticket Information

UFC Fight Night: Tuivasa vs. Tybura will take place Saturday, March 16 at UFC APEX in Las Vegas. The entire card will stream exclusively on ESPN+ in English and Spanish with the prelims beginning at 4 PM ET / 1 PM PT followed by the main card at 7 PM ET / 4 PM PT.

UFC APEX VIP Experience packages are available via On Location, UFC's Official VIP Experience Provider. Enjoy exclusive access with an official ticket package that includes premium seating, all-inclusive hospitality, in-seat beverage service, meet-and-greets with UFC Octagon girls and more. Visit UFCVIP.com for more information.

Source: Press Release